Moody's upgrades Saudi Arabia's credit rating to Aa3 with stable outlook    Riyadh Metro to begin partial operations next Wednesday: Report    Al Okhdood halts Al Shabab's winning streak with a 1-1 draw in Saudi Pro League    Mahrez leads Al Ahli to victory over Al Fayha in Saudi Pro League    Al Qadsiah hands Al Nassr their first defeat in the Saudi Pro League    Saudi musical marvels takes center stage in Tokyo's iconic opera hall    Downing Street indicates Netanyahu faces arrest if he enters UK    London's Gatwick airport reopens terminal after bomb scare evacuation    Civil Defense warns of thunderstorms across Saudi Arabia until Tuesday    Saudi Arabia, Japan strengthen cultural collaboration with new MoU    Slovak president meets Saudi delegation to bolster trade and investment ties    Saudi defense minister meets with Swedish state secretary    Navigating healthcare's future: Solutions for a sustainable system    Al Khaleej qualifies for Asian Men's Club League Handball Championship final    Sixth foreign tourist dies of suspected methanol poisoning in Laos    Katy Perry v Katie Perry: Singer wins right to use name in Australia    Trump picks Pam Bondi as attorney general after Matt Gaetz withdraws    Al-Jasser: Saudi Arabia to expand rail network to over 8,000 km    Sitting too much linked to heart disease –– even if you work out    Denmark's Victoria Kjær Theilvig wins Miss Universe 2024    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Gbagbo accused in rape, murder campaign
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 07 - 01 - 2011


UN condemns blocking of probes
PARIS/ABIDJAN: Ivory Coast's presidential claimant Alassane Ouattara said on Thursday he had proof his rival, Laurent Gbagbo, had instigated post-election violence and ordered foreign agents to carry out killings.
There was no immediate reaction from Gbagbo's camp but the United Nations said the confirmed death toll from the violence had risen to 210 and condemned the blocking of investigators trying to probe reports of further killings.
Ivory Coast has been in turmoil since a Nov. 28 presidential election that Western powers and African states say was won by Ouattara.
Gbagbo has held on to power and called for UN forces to leave the country, a moved rejected by the world body, which on Wednesday called for an extra 1,000-2,000 peacekeepers to bolster the existing force of 10,000 soldiers and policemen.
“Laurent Gbagbo has blood on his hands. He has ordered assassinations of citizens by foreign agents,” Ouattara told Europe 1 radio. “Of course, we have proof of this.”
“I have already written to the Secretary General of the United Nations to ask that the International Criminal Court send a team of investigators to Ivory Coast, and I am told that this will be done in coming days.”
Human rights groups and diplomats have said there are pro-Gbagbo Liberian mercenaries in Ivory Coast but Gbagbo's camp has always denied the charges.
The International Criminal Court has said it is monitoring the situation in Ivory Coast.
The UN had said that post-election violence had killed 170, but citing new information and further violence, including clashes that killed 14 in the western town of Duekoue, the UN mission has raised the death toll to 210.
Simon Munzu, the head of the human rights division in the UN mission, said on Thursday the real figure was likely to be even higher. “We want the international community to do everything it can to put a stop to this violence,” he said.
There are reports of at least two mass graves in Ivory Coast but investigators have been blocked from accessing them by masked pro-Gbagbo gunmen.
“Those who are blocking our investigations must remove these blockages,” Munzu said.
Ouattara, who is living in a hotel compound to which road access remains blocked despite a Gbagbo promise to the contrary, said more than 1,000 had been injured in the violence.
He said that a recount proposed by Gbagbo was out the question and ECOWAS, a group of West African states, had a duty to follow through on its threat of military intervention if Gbagbo did not step down by the end of January. “They cannot make commitments without following up on them.”
However, any such operation would be highly complex and is littered with logistical and political obstacles, so is likely to be some time off.
Gbagbo retains the loyalty of the armed forces but his authority has been rejected by West Africa's central bank, something that may eventually make it difficult for him to pay their wages. The flow of cocoa, the country's main export earner, has largely held up during the violence but industry players fear an escalation of violence and a number of exporters told Reuters in Abidjan that the flow of beans from around Duekoue, a key cocoa region, had dried up this week.
Ouattara encouraged foreign powers, who have already imposed a number of asset freezes and travel bans on Gbagbo and his circle, to harden sanctions.


Clic here to read the story from its source.